The present invention relates generally to display monitors for passenger vehicles, and more particularly to a display monitor system with a monitor that is automatically deployed or stowed upon the occurrence of a predetermined status change within a vehicle.
Display monitors systems have become popular accessories in passenger vehicles, and find a wide variety of applications in various vehicular systems. For example, a display monitor system may be used in a vehicle as a computer monitor, a navigation display, a closed-caption display for an external camera, etc. Flat panel display (FPD) monitor systems have become particularly popular in vehicular entertainment systems for such uses as a television, video game monitor or video cassette player monitor.
A display monitor system may be mounted in a variety of locations within a passenger compartment of a vehicle, depending upon the type of vehicle and the intended use of the system. For example, in a passenger automobile, a display monitor system for use as a rear seat passenger entertainment system display may be mounted to the ceiling of the passenger compartment of the vehicle at a location between the front and rear seats so that it is viewable by rear seat passengers.
Ceiling-mounted display monitor systems typically include a monitor that extends into the passenger compartment of a vehicle, often from a central region of the vehicle ceiling. Unfortunately, ceiling-mounted display monitor systems may potentially interfere with the ordinary use of the vehicle. For example, the monitor may partially obscure a driver""s rearward view when the driver is operating the vehicle in reverse. Similarly, the monitor may be a hindrance for a passenger getting into or out of the rear seat of the vehicle. For this reason, many display monitor systems include a monitor that is movable between a deployed position, in which the monitor is positioned for viewing by a vehicle occupant, and a stowed position, in which the monitor is positioned to lessen interference with the ordinary use of the vehicle.
Although stowable monitors offer safety benefits over fixed-position monitors, occupants of the vehicle may sometimes find stowing the monitor to be an inconvenience. For example, a driver wanting to use the automobile in reverse may need to get into the passenger compartment of the automobile to stow the monitor before backing up. Also, vehicle occupants may forget or neglect to stow the monitor when the automobile is not in use, which may make the monitor more susceptible to damage while performing activities such as loading or unloading a vehicle. Furthermore, it may be inconvenient for passengers getting into the automobile to first reach in and stow the monitor. In each of these situations, vehicle users may neglect to stow the monitor and thus not realize the safety benefits provided by the stowability. Therefore, it would be desirable to have a display monitor system with a stowable monitor that provides for the improved safety and convenience of vehicle occupants.
The present invention provides a display monitor system for mounting in an automobile, the automobile having an interior and a vehicle status indicator with a changeable state that. The display monitor system comprises a monitor, a motor drivingly coupled to the monitor, and a controller operatively connected to the motor for controlling the motor. The monitor has a viewing surface, and is configured to be movably coupled to the interior of the automobile such that the monitor is movable between a deployed position, in which the viewing surface is visible to the viewer, and a stowed position. The motor is drivingly coupled to the monitor to move the monitor between the stowed position and the deployed position. The controller is adapted to detect a change in the state of the vehicle status indicator and to signal the motor to move the monitor to a predetermined position corresponding to the detected change in the state. Alternatively, the controller may be adapted to itself detect a status of a vehicle component, and to move the monitor accordingly.